


Praemonitus Praemunitus

by truthinred



Category: Zero Escape (Video Games), Zero Escape: Virtue's Last Reward - Fandom
Genre: Gen, ZEcret Santa
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-12-22
Updated: 2014-12-22
Packaged: 2018-03-02 20:21:35
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 4
Words: 2,152
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/2824961
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/truthinred/pseuds/truthinred
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Sigma has company as he watches his termites speech.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Phi

**Author's Note:**

> A zecret santa gift for silhouettedepth from endless-nine! Additional chapters have some quick drabbles of the Rhizome-9 residents in the same situation.

“You investigated this room, right? Along with Tenmyouji and Quark.” Phi gave a quick nod of her head towards a raised panel on the floor. It hummed with soft light. “What did this disc do?”

Sigma shifted uncomfortably. _Time to get some more shit from Phi._ “Uh, nothing. I mean, maybe something, but we couldn’t get it to turn on. I guess Tenmyouji fixed it…?” A disquieting feeling settled into his gut. “Should I touch it?”

Phi’s response was flat. “Stop asking me for permission and do it already.”

The platform’s light flickered briefly, and a hologram whirred to life. A _hologram?_

An elderly man sneered into the empty space behind them. He had a mess of grey hair dusted over a robotic monocle, which was fixed into his right eye. His simple clothes – a t-shirt and jeans - were stained with errant flecks of oil. He wore a coat that resembled Dio’s – it was as long as it was ostentatious, and spangled with superfluous buttons. The man held a hand casually aloft, as though he were swirling expensive liquor in an invisible brandy glass.  _All this guy needs is a lapcat to stroke and he’d have the purrtentous B-movie villain aesthetic down._

The man in the hologram cleared his throat. **“So, you’ve finally made it.”** His voice filled the room, rich and deep.

“Wow, what the hell is this guy wearing?” Sigma glanced at Phi with an easy grin. Her face looked ashen. “Hey Phi, are you—“

“What the _fuck_ is this, Sigma?” Her voice had lost its air of practiced indifference.

_What?_ “Dude, I don’t know, that’s what I ask—“

**“I am Zero,”** the hologram continued. Phi took a step back, her expression wooden. **“I was the one who brought you here.”** Another step. She sunk her center of gravity low and propelled herself backwards, landing beside the suit of armor with seeming effortlessness _. How is she doing that?_

“Would you _drop the act_?” She grabbed a handle of brandy and brandished its bulk in Sigma’s direction. “Don’t move.”

“Of—what?! Phi, what the fuck are you talking about? Put that down, are you insane?!”

**“You undoubtedly have as many questions for me as there are stars in the sky,”** the man mused into nothingness.

 “Are you seriously going to pretend that isn’t you?” Incredulity cut the panic in her voice. “Sure. I mean, we’ve run into so many other _geriatric cyborgs_ while we’ve been trapped here. Hey, maybe you have a clone running around! This must be him.” She jerked her head towards the hologram, never dropping eye contact.

**“As you can see, however, this is only a recording. I will therefore be unable to directly answer any questions.”**

“What the hell are you talking about?! I look nothing like that guy! I’m twenty-two!” _Jesus! She’s always been weird, but…_

“Are you high?! Twenty-two _what_ , Sigma? It sure isn’t years! That is the worst fucking excuse that I’ve _ever_ —“ Her voice cut out abruptly. Memories prickled at her consciousness, and her mind was filled with the sound of her own derision. _Ha. Now THAT’S funny. You must’ve done a lot of drugs to look like that at twenty-two._

Phi grimaced. _If he’s Zero… why would plan a whole game and out himself like this?_ Her expression soured.

 “Touch your eye.”

“What? I’m not—“

“Your eye, Sigma. Your right eye.”

“Don’t be stupid.” Sigma gave her a dubious look before raising a hand to his right eye. “See? I—“ his breath caught as his fingers touched cold metal. “What is—what the fuck?! Oh my god! Phi, what the fuck?!” He grabbed at his face sloppily with both hands, feeling at its contours.

**“Ask if you wish, but I cannot respond.”**

“We’ll see about that.” Phi’s voice remained even but her gaze faltered slightly. “Do you have brain damage or something?” _If he knew about this recording, why would he let me see it?_  “Do you expect me to believe that you didn’t notice that you have a _cyborg eye?_ ”

“I… I don’t know! Look, I’m not that guy. For one, I’m not, like… ancient… and my voice sounds nothing like his! Come on!”

_Why tell a completely unbelievable lie?_   “You are ancient. Your voice sounds exactly like his.”Phi approached Sigma slowly, as one would a skittish animal. She extended a slender hand towards him.

“Phi, what are you – ow!” She entwined two fingers in his hair and yanked abruptly.

“Look.” She unraveled her fingers to reveal threads of silver hair.

“I… oh my god… is that… maybe your hair?” The resistance in his voice flagged – Phi’s hair was clearly several shades lighter.

“Are you serious? Check for yourself.”

**“Now… where to begin? There are many things I wish to tell you.”** The old man continued to ramble, oblivious to the pandemonium unfolding in the Director’s Office. Sigma ran his fingers through his hair with increasing desperation.

“Oh, thank god! Okay, maybe this guy is gonna explain why he… he stole my body or something—“

**“But unfortunately,”** he continued, **“our time is limited. As such, the information I can provide is also limited.”**

“Oh, for – _who limited our time, exactly?_ ” Phi gritted her teeth, her composure straining.

**“I have chosen two things of great importance to tell you.”**

“Maybe… why he made me look like him, and why he kidnapped us?” Sigma’s voice held a strained and desperate optimism.

**“First, I will tell you about termites.”**

“ _What?!”_

“What the _fuck_ , Sigma?!”

**“Hm. In retrospect, I suppose that’s a rather odd thing to say. I imagine you look rather bewildered right now.”**

“You are such an asshole.”

  
**“Perfectly understandable. The person who kidnapped you and threatened you with death is lecturing you about insects. I suspect it hardly seems fair.”**

“That’s _not me_ , how many times do I have to—“

**“Nonetheless, this is very important. In a way, it will determine your fate. So I ask that you listen carefully…”**

The man proceeded to ramble at length. His speech contained, among other things, the universe’s most longwinded allegory for the existence of a higher-order extradimensional intelligence. It also contained information on more immediate and comprehensible matters.

“B-bomb? Did he say there were bombs here?!”

“Don’t you remember?” Phi chewed her lip. “I’m pretty sure this isn’t the first… _”_   Images flooded her head, unbidden. _Memories…? Hallucinations?_ Sigma collapsed on the floor, a purple vial clutched in his stiffening fingers. Sigma injecting her with… something? Dead again, at the cost of his own life. Her own voice, with a weak _thank you, Sigma…_ as the world paled white.

“Why would I blow _myself_ up with a bomb? If we – god, this sounds stupid – if we _died_ already then that means I blew _myself_ up with a bomb, back… back then. I’m not the sort of asshole who’d kill anyone, and I’d have no reason to kill _myself_ …”

“Well, you’re both assholes but that guy’s obviously smarter than you.”

 “W-what? Hey!” Sigma continued to make noises of protest, but Phi drowned him out.

“What you’re saying is so unbelievable that it might actually be true.” _Maybe he drugged himself?_

**“You cannot tell any of your companions what you heard or saw here. If you do, you will be penalized. Immediately.”**

_Any of your companions…? Did he want just me to see this? No, that can’t be right. I volunteered to come – he couldn’t have predicted that I personally would follow him. He initially left by himself. Did he just want to see it himself? If so, why didn’t he refuse when I offered to join him? Further, how did Tenmyouji activate this? There doesn’t appear to be any sort of input device or power button. Could he have intended for only Tenmyouji and Quark to see it? If that was the case, why did he activate it with me here? Could he have activated it to remove suspicion from himself, knowing that I would likely activate it if he didn’t?_

“—ther, I would never wear a jacket like that, and I don’t talk like a Bond villain either. This entire thing is stupid.” Evidently, Sigma had been talking while she was lost in thought. _Probably not a huge loss._

_“Ten minutes remain until Ambidex polling closes.”_

“We need to look for the bombs. See if you can’t remember where the others are. I have a feeling we’re not so lucky that there’s just one. And don’t tell anyone about your midlife crisis, either.”

“It’s not a midlife crisis!”

“Okay, I was being generous. Your three-quarter life crisis.”

“ _I’m twenty-two!”_


	2. Luna

“Goddammit! You can’t just spout all that crap and disappear!” Sigma swung a hard left hook into the empty air the hologram had occupied until moments prior. It was a spectacularly futile, if cathartic gesture.

“That asshole! What the hell?!”

Luna’s eyes went wide. “Um, perhaps he was a bit… verbose… but I’m sure what he was saying was very important.”

“What? Come on, _termites?_ He just threatened to _kill us_ if we… what, exactly? Told people that some old douchebag in a stupid jacket condescended to us for ten minutes? Is he really Zero?”

“I… can’t say for sure. Who knows?” She offered a feeble smile.

“Do you have any idea who this guy is, Luna? Have you seen him before?”

“W-what?” she looked stunned. “Um, no. Of course not.”

“God. Fuck that guy. Did he say he planted a _bomb?_ ”


	3. Kyle

**“That is the last of the information that this message was meant to convey. Before I go, however, I have a warning. You cannot tell any of your companions what you heard or saw here. If you do, you will be penalized. Immediately. I hope we will meet again someday. We would have much to discuss…”**

“Goddammit! You can’t just spout all that crap and disappear!”

K’s posture stiffened, armored fingers balling the fabric of his robe. He stared into the empty air that the hologram had occupied.

“I was not aware that you had planted bombs in the facility. Is this what she meant about her inevitable death? You were… willing to kill us as well, then?“ K’s voice came with an uncharacteristic slowness. He sounded as though he was very far away. “She… died… for this?”

“What do you mean _me?_ I sure as hell didn’t plant any bombs! What are you talking about?!“

“You facilitated their planting, then? Am I incorrect?”

“How the hell would I know?! K, are you feeling okay?”

“Please, stop.” He exhaled a slow breath. “You mentioned a ‘number one bomb’. To me, this implies that there are at least two bombs. Do you know the password to the other, or others?”

“Why would I? What do you mean _me?_ I have no idea who that guy is!”

“I see. Even now…” his voice tapered to nothingness.

“Sigma.” K turned to the door, his movement mechanical. “The ‘future where nobody has to die’ – can I assume that ‘nobody’ excludes us?”

“K! Stop! Do you know that guy?!”

K departed the room with a sedate finality. He glanced back as the door’s hydraulics hissed in closing.

“I… wouldn’t say so, no.”


	4. Akane

“Then I shall accompany you.”

“Uh… sure, K. Let’s go!"

This timeline was one of many fruitless branches – the inevitable consequence of any number of temporal missteps. The participants could not all be saved – Clover and Tenmyouji would be dying shortly - though some could be spared. Kyle was still asleep in his treatment pod, and could be revived by any other GAULEM - a contingency set in place in the likely event that the rest of Rhizome 9’s residents perished during the project. Still, it was not entirely impossible that the timeline would prove useful in some way, that Sigma or Phi would pluck some small, invaluable memory from it. The game would continue.

**“…”**

Akane watched as Sigma recited his particularly overbearing speech. While she was glad she’d successfully impressed the importance of the project onto him, she was surprised at the lengths he went to talk about it.

“What the hell?! Hey K, do you have any idea who that guy is?” She wore a wry smile – a luxury afforded to her by the helmeted armor.

“I haven’t the foggiest idea. My apologies, Sigma.”

Sigma frowned, his wrinkles deepening. “I guess it was pointless to ask someone with no memories… maybe you’ve seen him and you just don’t remember?”

“Perhaps, but somebody like that would be difficult to forget. I’m not sure if I have ever heard somebody use so many words to say so little.” While Akane mimed Kyle’s body language with an effortless fluidity, she swallowed a small laugh.

“Yeah! Jesus, what was that guy's damage?”

“He certainly did seem to enjoy the sound of his own voice.” It wasn’t every day she got to take a shot at the doctor. While he was a brilliant and dedicated man, he was not always… tolerable. 


End file.
